He does, however, feel that Chelsea's Eden Hazard is also in with a shout, having coached the winger at Belgium throughout the tournament.

"I think it would be a shame if a French player does not win the Balon d'Or, apart from Eden Hazard because he was extraordinary at every Wold Cup match - defensively and on the counter-attack," he said, per Sky Sports News .

"But logically, a French player should win. Why not Varane? He won the Champions League, he was very strong.

"There is the alien (extra-terrestrial) Kylian Mbappe, and also Antoine Griezmann. But I can also mention many players."

Mbappe, of course, made his name with Monaco and his reputation continues to soar with PSG.

The 19-year-old is already a World Cup winner, and truly announced himself on the world stage in Russia, as he scored in the final, and also netted a brace in a classic encounter with Argentina.

And Henry, while astonished at his rise, is unhappy that he does not have the teenager to call upon, with his side currently joint-bottom of Ligue 1.

Article continues below

"We have a star. He is an outstanding player and let's be happy that he is in France," he added.

"I would have liked him to still be here at Monaco. The match (against PSG, this weekend) would have been easier for us.

"What can you say about Kylian Mbappe? Everyone talks about his dribbling, but I have always talked about his game intelligence at his age. I have rarely seen that."